


Keep the Doctor Away

by RushingHeadlong



Category: Bohemian Rhapsody (Movie 2018), Queen (Band)
Genre: Aftercare, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Medical Kink, Medical Trauma, Multi, No Smut, Safewords, Under-negotiated Kink
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-28
Updated: 2020-12-28
Packaged: 2021-03-10 16:33:57
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,617
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28370208
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RushingHeadlong/pseuds/RushingHeadlong
Summary: Brian makes a mistake when he tries to ignore his misgivings about Roger's new kink.
Relationships: John Deacon/Brian May/Freddie Mercury/Roger Taylor
Comments: 1
Kudos: 28





	Keep the Doctor Away

**Author's Note:**

> DL bingo prompt fill for “Medical Kink” that I wrote back in September... At least I finally got it posted now?
> 
> Set around 1975ish, after Brian's health problems in '74. 
> 
> As a warning, this fic deals with a lack of communication leading to Brian safewording. Brian’s consent in the scene is willing but not enthusiastic. There’s no coercion here and the situation is discussed at the end, but please read with care if this topic may be triggering to you.

When Roger explains what he wants to try Brian doesn’t feel an immediate surge of lust at the prospect, but he tells himself that that doesn't necessarily have to mean anything. After all, it wouldn't be the first time that one of them wasn't completely enthusiastic about another's kink, and with Freddie and John eagerly onboard with the idea - and Brian not _not_ onboard - they all agree to give it a go.

Queen isn’t quite drowning in royalties yet but Freddie certainly seems to think that they are, and over the next few days he picks up an assortment of odds-and-ends from god only knows where: Stethoscopes, lab coats, and some devices that Brian only gets a glimpse at before they’re squirreled away again. He leaves John and Freddie to plan out the scene, since they're better at that than he is anyway, and they only fill him in on the basics once they have everything already figured out.

It should be smooth sailing from there. Some roleplay, a little light bondage, and a few pieces of medical equipment turned into sex toys, and hopefully this evening will be everything that Roger has fantasized about.

 _This is for Roger,_ Brian reminds himself as he pulls on the lab coat and drapes a stethoscope around his neck. He watches Freddie pull on a pair of latex exam gloves and pretends that he doesn't feel strangely anxious at the sight. _I_ _t doesn’t have to be my thing, as long as it’s his_.

“Right, well, what seems to be the problem today, Mister… Taylor, is it?” John asks as he flips through a few pages on his clipboard. Even though Brian can see that the papers are blank he still feels incredibly discomforted by both John's demeanor and the overall picture he paints. He certainly plays the part of a harried and disinterested doctor a little too well.

“I just don’t feel well,” Roger says, a little breathy, and Brian knows that that’s just the way his voice gets when he’s subbing and starting to get into things but Brian still gives him a quick once-over to make sure that he isn’t _really_ coming down with something.

“Hmm,” John hums, still flipping back and forth through the blank pages. “Can you be more specific than that, Mr. Taylor?”

“I think it’s my stomach?” Roger says and Brian feels his own stomach start to do somersaults.

“Alright, well, Dr. Mercury, Dr. May, would you get Mr. Taylor ready for the examination?” John asks.

Freddie moves forward without hesitation but Brian doesn’t. He knows that this is their bedroom, just with a few new accoutrements added to it. He knows that John and Freddie aren’t actually doctors, just like he knows that there isn’t actually anything wrong with Roger’s stomach, but Brian is still frozen in place now.

“Dr. May?” John prompts when he realizes that Brian hasn’t moved at all.

Brian doesn’t answer. His vision is swimming and he thinks he can smell antiseptic and hospital cleaners under the usual odors of their bedroom. He tries to focus on the scent of Freddie’s aftershave, the lingering smell of their laundry detergent, but it all keeps slipping away from him. His old nightmares are resurfacing and he knows, he _knows_ , that they’re just playing pretend here but it’s like there’s a glitch happening in his brain that only lets him see a real hospital in front of him.

“Brian?” Freddie asks softly as he steps back away from the bed. “Everything alright, dear?”

He reaches out for Brian - with hands that are still covered in latex exam gloves - and Brian flinches back from him. Freddie’s eyes widen in surprise and Brian quickly blurts out, “Red.”

Everyone seems to move at once. John leaves the room, and Roger scrambles off the bed and turns on a few extra lights and re-opens their bedroom curtains to break the atmosphere. Freddie tears off his gloves, lab coat, and stethoscope and once he’s just _Freddie_ again he gently starts stripping Brian out of his own doctor costume. John returns, sans outfit as well, with a large box that he quickly sweeps all of the medical paraphernalia into before shoving the box into their closet to completely hide it from view.

Freddie bundles up Brian’s costume and takes a step back, but Brian quickly grabs his wrist to keep him close. “Don’t- don’t go,” he manages to choke out. He doesn’t want to be alone, he’s _always_ left alone in the hospital-

“Alright, darling, it’s alright, I’m not going anywhere,” Freddie says as he steps closer to Brian again and passes Brian’s lab coat and stethoscope off to Roger instead. Freddie gently rubs his hands up and down Brian’s arm and he asks, “Do you want to sit down?”

Brian looks around the bedroom. It looks like a bedroom again, not a hospital room, but even as Brian nods he says, “Not- not here, though?”

“Living room?” Freddie suggests. Brian nods. “Alright then, that sounds like an excellent plan.”

Freddie leads Brian out of the bedroom with one arm draped around his shoulders, and once they reach the living room he sits down next to Brian on the couch. John grabs a spare blanket from their hall closet and Freddie helps him drape it over the two of them, while Roger detours into the kitchen and reappears a few minutes later with four mugs of tea.

Brian takes his mug and wraps his hands around it. The warm ceramic is grounding and keeps Brian focused on where he actually is, and not the hellish memories that his brain keeps trying to slide back into.

“Do you think you can talk about what happened?” John asks after a few minutes of silence.

Brian shrugs. “I don’t- I don’t know. I don’t know.”

“You don’t know if you can talk about it, or you don’t know what happened?” John asks gently.

“John, maybe give him a minute-” Freddie starts, but Brian cuts him off.

“A little of both,” Brian says. Talking about this is helping to keep him grounded but it feels like his brain is running on half-power at the moment and he just can’t find the words to explain what happened.

“Okay, Brian, that’s okay,” John says. “Do you want me to keep asking about this now, or do you want to talk about it later?”

“Now,” Brian says, grateful that John understands what’s going on in Brian’s mind even if it feels like he doesn’t understand himself at all.

“It was the medical stuff that set you off, yeah?” Roger asks first, before John can say anything. Brian nods and Roger sighs a little in frustration. “Then why did you agree to this? We _all_ have to be onboard with scenes like this or they’re never going to work!”

Brian shrinks in on himself and Freddie pulls him in a little closer, holding him a little bit tighter as Brian stammers, “I- I didn’t know, I didn’t know it would set me off.”

John turns towards Roger and murmurs, “Rog, if you can’t have this conversation without bringing your own feelings into it then _stay quiet_ until Bri’s alright again, okay?”

“Sorry,” Rog mutters, slouching down further into his seat.

John sighs and stands up, moving over to where Roger is sitting. “Budge over, you idiot,” he says, though his tone is fond rather than annoyed. Roger does, letting John sit down next to him and wrap his arms around him. “Are _you_ alright?”

Roger nods, and even Brian can see how he relaxes into John’s embrace. “Just feel bad,” he says to John, and then he looks back up at Brian. “I’m sorry,” he apologizes. “I never would have suggested this if I had known-”

“ _I_ didn’t know,” Brian says again. “It wasn’t my _thing_ but I didn’t think it I’d have a problem. It was just too- too much.” He tightens his grip on his cup of tea and adds, a little softer, “The- the stomach comments weren’t great either.”

“ _Shit_ ,” Roger swears as he realizes what must have happened. “Brian, I am _so_ sorry-”

“‘s fine,” Brian interrupts. “You didn’t know. I didn’t know. It’s fine.”

“We’ll have to talk about this more later, figure out how to make sure this doesn’t happen again,” John says. “Maybe stop trying out scenes unless everyone is enthusiastic about it.”

“Then we wouldn’t ever try anything new,” Freddie points out.

“Begrudgingly going along with someone else’s kink isn’t exactly sexy,” John says.

“That’s not what I’m saying,” Freddie says, rolling his eyes. “Everyone has to be willing participants, _obviously_ , but we aren’t always going to exactly share fantasies and that's alright. But we should maybe be more transparent in the planning, to hopefully nip issues like this in the bud before this happens again.”

“Sorry,” Brian mumbles.

Freddie kisses him on the temple and says, “You have nothing to be sorry for. We’ll figure something out for future scenes, and just leave you out of the next medical one altogether and it’ll be alright.”

Everything is already starting to feel more alright. Now that he’s away from the scene Brian has started to calm down, and it feels like his brain is starting to come back online. He’s not quite ready to fall back into bed with his partners, but this little misstep in their sex life is finally starting to feel like just that: a misstep. Not the end of the world, not the beginning of a terrible nightmare, not Brian single-handedly ruining their plans for the evening… Just a little glitch, one that they’ll get through and bounce back from stronger than ever.


End file.
